5p coins are fully legal tender in the UK and remain in active circulation, including both Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III designs. They are legal tender for amounts up to £5. Only the smaller, post-1990 5p coins are currently accepted, not the larger, older versions.
Most high-street banks in the United Kingdom are willing to accept demonetised coins from their customers. Larger Post Office branches are usually willing to accept demonetised coins in exchange for goods and services. Please be aware, however, they are under no legal obligation to do so.
Rare & Error 5p Coins Worth Big Money You Might Have!
Can you spend a 5 coin in the UK?
Any coin to be legal tender that is not included in the Coinage Act of 1971 needs to be issued with a Royal Proclamation from the Queen. Thanks to Queen Elizabeth being advised by her Privy Council to issue a proclamation, we are now able to use £20 and £5 coins as we would any other legal tender.
Most national banks, local banks and credit unions will accept coins in exchange for cash. However, policies and procedures vary by institution and location. For example, national banks like Chase and Capital One exchange pre-rolled coins for cash for account holders.
For example, 1p and 2p coins only count as legal tender for any amount up to 20p. And 5p and 10p coins only count for any amount up to £5. But £1 and £2 coins count as legal tender for any amount. Many common and safe payment methods such as cheques, debit cards and contactless are not legal tender.
Most UK banks will allow you to pay into your account at the Post Office. This is probably the easiest place to get rid of old coins (as well as notes) – you can deposit them into your bank account at any Post Office.
The short answer is simple: don't clean your old coins. Even well-intentioned cleaning can permanently reduce their value, strip away historical patina, and leave invisible damage.
A normal base metal Crown may fetch £10 or more if particularly desirable. The gold and silver commemorative £5 coins will often be worth far more on metal value alone, and their more limited mintage figures may result in an even high price.
Try taking old or foreign coins to your local charity shop as many charities accept them to help raise valuable funds. You can also often donate foreign coins on your return flight from holiday.
The rarest circulating 5p coin is generally considered the 1977 Crowned Thistle 5p, with the lowest mintage of around 24.3 million, making it highly sought by collectors, though error coins or special releases (like early King Charles III Oak Leaf 5ps) can also be rare finds, with some selling for significant premiums.
High grade cupro-nickel coins are becoming harder to find, and owing to lack of appreciation in the wider dealer market even the choicer grades are bulked in with low grade material increasing tarnish, bag marks and the like.
An unworn florin dated prior to 1920 contains 0.3364 oz of silver, and this gives a bullion value of about £12.87 or US$16.87. Florins from the period 1920 to 1946 contain 0.1818 oz of silver and thus have a bullion value of £6.96 or US$9.12.
The Coinage Act of 1965, Pub. L. 89–81, 79 Stat. 254, enacted July 23, 1965, eliminated silver from the circulating United States dime (ten-cent piece) and quarter dollar coins.
Banks can freeze your account if they suspect fraud, money laundering, illegal activity or if there's been a court order. If it's happened to you, it can be really upsetting and confusing, especially if you haven't heard directly from your bank to explain why.
Indeed, many large banks have phased out courtesy coin counting, believing that the obvious convenience afforded to customers is outweighed by the cost and nuisance of rolling quarters, nickels, dimes, and (especially) pennies.
So, what should you do with those pennies now? You can continue to spend them. Retailers will continue to accept pennies if you want to pay with exact change. However, you certainly shouldn't save them in the hopes that their value will increase, as that's unlikely to happen in the near future.
The rarest and most valuable UK penny is arguably the 1933 George V Penny, a ceremonial "pattern" coin, with only seven known examples, fetching up to £72,000+ due to extreme rarity, as they were never meant for circulation. Other highly sought-after rarities include the 1922 Bronze Penny, known for its very low mintage after WWI, and error coins like the 1954 Penny (often mistakenly thought unissued) or the 1944-46 darkened pennies, appealing to serious collectors of transitional or error pieces.
If you cannot track one down, you can purchase a 1971 Penny for a very reasonable price. By filtering on eBay for coins that had already sold, we found that buyers can pick up a 1971 1p coin for about £1, including postage. Rolls containing fifty uncirculated 1971 1ps are easily purchased for under £5.
The penny was originally minted from bronze, but since 1992 has been minted in copper-plated steel due to increasing copper prices. There are an estimated 10.5 billion 1p coins in circulation as of 2016, with a total face value of around £105,000,000.
